Ocean Waves
by Olivia Y
Summary: [Rukawa x Hanamichi] "When the school year begins, I'm not returning to Shouhoku" - Hanamichi. [RuHana Day 2004]
1. 1

**Ocean Waves**

There was only one week left before the new school year would start, and this was the last day he would be spending at this training camp with the All-Japan young athletes' team. Much as Rukawa Kaede resented the idea of returning to school, it was something of a relief to know he would soon be back in the comfort of his own home.

Dawn had barely broken, but Rukawa was already out of his dormitory and making his way down towards the nearby beach. He usually took this time of day to jog as an extra part of his training, but as it was his final day there, he decided to take the chance to have one last, long look at the beautiful scenery.

He strolled leisurely down along the beach, his shoes in one hand, just deep enough in the tide for the waves to wash away the footprints he didn't want left behind.

He'd miss this beach when he returned to Kanagawa, Rukawa knew. Back home everything was a little too familiar, and it's difficult to take long walks like this without running into someone he knew, or claimed to know him. On too many occasions he had been approached by one or some of his so-called 'fans' when all he was a little time to himself, here he never had that problem.

Although, that particular morning, Rukawa's main objective wasn't to be alone.

He knew he wouldn't be the only one on that beach that morning, even in such early hours. Somewhere down the far end of his walk, he knew he'd run into someone who also knew him, and knew him all but a little too well.

It seemed like a bizarre coincidence, Rukawa had discovered on his first jogging session, that this was the same place Sakuragi Hanamichi had been sent to for this rehabilitation program. In fact the rehab center was no more than a twenty-minute walk from Rukawa's training camp.

When Rukawa first spotted him, he had been grinning like an idiot at a piece of paper he was holding – a letter, as Rukawa later found out, from some girl back home – and then suddenly he looked up. There had been a brief moment of surprise as he recognized Rukawa, before a short-but-rapid verbal fight between them took place.

Since then Rukawa has made a routine out of it, and for some odd reason Hanamichi seemed to follow it too. Every morning, at almost the same time, Rukawa would pass by the spot on the sand where Hanamichi would be sitting, and a similar scene as that which happened on the first day would take place.

About once a week though, the red-haired fool would be too engrossed in reading letters from that girl to pay attention to anything else. On those occasions, he wouldn't even notice it when Rukawa ran past him – twice – and hence they'd go by that day without speaking at all.

Not today, however.

It didn't take him long to spot Hanamichi, but Rukawa was surprised to see that he wasn't sitting up as usual, but lying flat on his back, eyes closed as if he was asleep.

When Rukawa arrived beside Hanamichi, he nudged him softly in the side with his foot.

"Oi, you still alive?"

Large brown eyes opened in shock, and immediately took on a look of fury.

"Humph!" Hanamichi grunted, but he didn't bother retaliating, nor did he make any move to get up.

Rukawa was surprised, and slightly taken aback, it wasn't like Hanamichi to ignore an insult like that.

"What's wrong with you?"

"I broke my back playing basketball, remember?" the response was sarcastic and bitter.

"It's not broken you idiot"

"Oh yeah? And when did you suddenly become a doctor?"

Rukawa frowned, obviously Hanamichi was in a foul mood that morning, but he hadn't the faintest idea why. For most of the past few weeks Hanamichi had been insisting that his back was fine and he'd be back to beat Rukawa any day now. The sudden change of attitude disturbed him.

"Seriously, what's wrong?" He demanded.

"Nothing, my life is perfect" The other boy spat out disdainfully.

"You don't sound like you mean that"

"Oh yeah? So what _do_ I mean then?"

"Why are you being such a jerk?" with his one effort at being nice rejected, Rukawa was growing impatient.

"I thought you reckoned I was always a jerk"

"No, I've reckoned you were always an _idiot_"

"Big difference" 

"What the heck is the matter with..."

"Rukawa!" Hanamichi yelled, not allowing him to finish "Just leave me alone okay?"

Though he himself had many times requested that of others, Rukawa didn't expect to take as much offence from Hanamichi's outburst as he did.

"Fine!" He retorted "I don't have any time to waste here with you anyway"

"Yeah, you better get back and train hard so you'd stand a chance with making the national team" Hanamichi glared up at him spitefully.

"I'd make it sooner than you ever will"

As soon as he said that, Rukawa regretted it, the hurt and anger on Hanamichi's face struck back at him harder than anything physical could've done.

"Just get lost Rukawa" Hanamichi hissed, closing his eyes "Quit been such a pain"

"Ch'"

Dejected and feeling very much annoyed, Rukawa just wanted to turn back to his camp and completely ignore the fact Hanamichi ever existed. But for some reason he couldn't bring himself to just leave, something was troubling this boy whom he begrudgingly called a teammate, and his behavior made Rukawa uneasy.

As he was trying to make up his mind of what to do, he heard a soft murmur behind him.

"Sorry"

The apology sounded almost sincere, Rukawa couldn't help but take a glance backwards. He has never heard Hanamichi apologizing before, he never even thought he'd be capable of such a thing.

Hanamichi's eyes were still closed, but his brows were knitted and lips pressed together in such a way that he looked as if he was trying not to cry.

Slightly alarmed, Rukawa knelt down on the sand beside him and asked cautiously "You sure you're okay?"

Very slowly, Hanamichi shook his head.

"What's wrong?"

"Why do you care?"

"I..." Rukawa stuttered "I _don't_ care"

"Then why are you asking?" 

"I... just don't like your attitude"

"Humph"

"And besides..." Rukawa said as apathetically as he could, sitting down and trying to get comfortable "I don't want you acting like this when we get back to school, those seniors and Ayako-san would be all concerned about you and I don't want any distractions"

"Is that all?"

"...Yes"

"Well then..." Hanamichi finally opened his eyes and looked at him "You have nothing to worry about"

"Hn?"

"There won't be any distractions, not from me anyway"

"What do you mean?"

Hanamichi bit his lip, and shifted his gaze to the ocean. A moment of silence later he took a deep breath, and said with little emotion:

"I'm not gonna be there"

"Huh?"

"I won't be going back"

"What?" Rukawa jolted "What are you talking about?"

"When the school year begins, I'm not returning to Shouhoku"

---

**A/N: **Happy RuHana Day 2004 (Belated as though this may be)! Reviews much appreciated.


	2. 2

**A/N: **Thanks a lot to reviewers! This is probably the quickest update I've made for a long time!

---

"Wha...what?" Rukawa could only stutter.

"Have you gone deaf or something?" Hanamichi said impatiently "I said I'm not going back to Shouhoku!"

"I heard you the first time!" Rukawa snapped, frustrated that Hanamichi had missed the point entirely "What do you mean you're not going back?"

"Isn't it self-explanatory?"

Rukawa sighed in annoyance "Then where are you going?"

"Huh?"

"If you're not going back to Shouhoku, then where? Ryonan? Shoyo?" Rukawa could only guess that Hanamichi has been the scouted by some other coach, though the very thought of it seemed ridiculous.

"What are you on about?" Hanamichi exclaimed, "I'm not changing schools!"

"Huh...?" Rukawa was befuddled "You just said you weren't going back..."

"Well I didn't mean I was going anywhere else..."

"You mind telling me exactly what's going on then?!"

Hanamichi sat up slowly, shaking the sand out of his hair "They're making me stay here..."

"They?"

"Yeah..." Hanamichi tilted his head in the direction of the rehab center "The doctors and them, they're not letting me go back"

"Why not?"

"Why do you think?" said Hanamichi, irritated "They're not satisfied with the healing progress, obviously!"

"Of your back?"

"Un..."

Rukawa wasn't sure whether to feel worried or relieved. His mind told him he should be indifferent whatever happened, but he couldn't help getting worked up inside, much as he tried to not let it show. The fact that Hanamichi wasn't leaving for another school, made Rukawa feel a little easier, but hearing that his healing process wasn't going as smoothly as hoped certainly wasn't of any comfort.

Hanamichi sat hunched over, as if staring at his own knees, on an impulse Rukawa reached out and ran one finger swiftly down his back, along the spine. Hanamichi gasped at the sudden, unanticipated sensation and arched backwards sharply.

"What the hell was that for?!" He screamed "Don't touch me!"

"You look fine to me" Rukawa replied calmly, making a show of wiping his finger on the edge of his shirt.

"You trying to pick a fight or something?"

"So what else is new?"

"Ugh!" Hanamichi groaned "You think I'm happy about staying here? I _feel_ fine as well! But apparently, according to those rehab people, if I try anything intensive now it'll just get worse real fast"

"What did you say to that?"

"What _could_ I say to that? They even called Anzai-Sensei and told him about this, and the old man went along with it, so it wouldn't make a difference if I go back anyway"

"How long are they making you stay?"

"A month"

"A month?!" Rukawa couldn't help but exclaim, "We'd already be in training for the winter games"

Hanamichi scowled at him "What's your point?"

"..." Rukawa didn't know how to respond, he felt pretty idiotic for what he just said, but it was true- in one month training would be fully underway, and by the looks of things there's no chance of Hanamichi being fit enough by then to join in.

"You worried?" Hanamichi spoke again when Rukawa didn't respond.

"Worried? About what?"

"About..."

"If you think I'm worried about you then you're just delusional!" Rukawa cut in hastily, realizing what Hanamichi might be saying "You can stay here for the entire year, it doesn't make a difference to me! In fact, it'd be a _relief_ not to have you there messing things up whenever I'm trying to concentrate, I'm just making sure of that, that's all"

As he finished his 'explanation', Rukawa noticed that Hanamichi 's expression was growing darker and angrier at every word he was saying.

"What...?"

"I was only going to ask..." Hanamichi said with gritted teeth "If you were worried that there wouldn't be enough players for the winter games..."

"Oh..." Rukawa almost blushed with embarrassment at his unnecessary denial.

"But if that's the way you feel about things..." Hanamichi continued "Why the hell are you sitting here talking to me?"

"I..." Much as he felt he should apologize, Rukawa just couldn't bring himself to do it "I just had some time to kill before breakfast"

"You don't have to spend it annoying me! Go catch a fish or something! Or take a nap, since when did you start getting up so early anyway?!"

"I always did"

"As if!"

"It's true!"

"It is _not_!"

"What how would _you_ know? I get up early to practice everyday"

"Oh and then you just catch up on that sleep in class?"

"Sure"

Hanamichi glared at him for a moment, then suddenly, he burst out laughing.

"Well that explains a lot of things!" He said between breaths "Now I know why you look so constantly out of it all the time! No wonder!"

"Do'aho..." Rukawa muttered, somewhat relieved with the change of subject. It was one of the advantages of dealing with someone so simple-minded, they never focus on one thing for too long.

"But it doesn't look good for the winter games, does it?" Hanamichi sighed, growing serious again "With Gori and Megane-Kun retired, and me stuck here for now, Mitchy and Ryochin are really holding up the fort all by themselves now"

Rukawa coughed "I'm still there"

"Yeah but you're no help"

"Ch'!" Any feeling of regret vanished at the comment "Self-righteous fool"

"What was that?!"

"I said, self righteous fool"

"Who are you talking about?!"

"Who do you think?" Rukawa said placidly "You of course, you idiot"

"That's it! You're so dead Rukawa!"

It was such a relief to see him fire up with the same, old, familiar anger, Rukawa almost smiled as Hanamichi, predictably enough, tried to take a punch to Rukawa's face. Instead of blocking or moving out of way, Rukawa caught Hanamichi by the wrist, and held on.

"Tse'!"

Wincing momentarily at the pressure of Rukawa's grip, Hanamichi then swung at him again with his free arm, but that too, turned out to be in vain, and Hanamichi found his wrists locked in Rukawa's hold as if he had been handcuffed.

"You're getting rusty," Rukawa said, raising one eyebrow provokingly.

"Let go of me!" Hanamichi demanded, been caught in this position meant he couldn't even try a head-butt "Let go of me or...!"

"Or you'll do what?" Rukawa challenged, tightening his grip even more.

"I'll kill you!" Hanamichi yelled, struggling to get free of Rukawa's hold.

"Just you try it!" Not backing down, Rukawa leant forward and pinned Hanamichi down by his wrists, forcing him to lay back down flat, his arms spread out either side of his body under Rukawa's strength.

"What are you trying to do?!" Hanamichi yelped in a panic "What do you want?!"

With a start, Rukawa suddenly realized just how close he was getting to Hanamichi's face, a few inches lower and they'd be practically necking.

It's been a long time... It's been a long time since I've seen him up this close... 

_There's something different..._

_But I can't put a finger on what it is..._

_His hair's longer, his skin more tanned..._

_But that's not it..._

_His eyes..._

_They look exactly the same as ever..._

_But they're not..._

_I can't see what's different..._

_But I can feel it..._

_Something..._

_It's been a long time..._

"Rukawa!"

Snapping out of his daze at the sound of Hanamichi's voice, Rukawa quickly regained his composure and let go of the other boy.

"Sorry" He said quickly, meaning it for more than just the physical attack.

"Hn" Hanamichi grunted as he sat up and dusted himself off "Did you get heavier or something during the vacation?"

"You're just a lot more sluggish than you use to be, if that's even possible" Rukawa shrugged, and stood up before Hanamichi could react "Anyway I've wasted too much time here already, I've gotta get back"

"Oh..." Hanamichi was a little surprised at the sudden announcement "I guess...you'd be heading back tomorrow by this time wouldn't you?"

"Un..."

"Well..." Hanamichi stood up as well "tell those people back home that the genius will be back and better any day now...if you can manage to remember such a simple message"

"Hn"

"See ya...I guess" Hanamichi shrugged, feeling a little awkward as he turned away and started to slowly walk back to the rehab center.

He hadn't gone more than three steps before he heard Rukawa call his name.

"Hana...michi..."

He looked back in shock, this was perhaps the first time ever he's heard Rukawa actually say his name, and his tone was so uncertain it was almost unrecognizable.

"Yeah?"

"I...I'm not leaving until tomorrow morning and...and there wouldn't be much for me to do tonight..." Rukawa said hesitantly.

"Eh?" Hanamichi was stumped "So?"

Rukawa heaved a sigh, he should've expected that reaction "I'll probably have a lot of time to kill..."

"Okay...and...?"

"I'll be here tonight! Do'aho!" Rukawa yelled, half-frustrated and half-embarrassed "Understand?!"

With that, he spun around and ran as fast as he could back to the camp, leaving Hanamichi standing, alone and very much bewildered, amongst the sand and waves of the small, tranquil beach.

---

**A/N: **To answer the questions in the reviews: kaechan - NO! No one is going to die in this fic! It's not even meant to be angst! (Waves arms madly) It's meant to be happy!  HaLKJAkiko - You're weird ().

Next Update will be somewhere in December. See you then!


	3. 3

The night air was cool and refreshing, reminding Hanamichi that summer was indeed drawing to an end. He pulled his blanket up tighter around his shoulders, silently thankful that the nurse had reminded him to bring it.

He didn't understand why he had come back down to the beach, all Rukawa had left him with that morning was a short, shouted command – and heaven knows Hanamichi never followed any command Rukawa would give – he had intended to ignore it, but ever since dinner he could not get Rukawa's parting words out of his head.

"_I'll be here tonight…"_

Yes, that's what Rukawa had said, at the time Hanamichi hadn't the faintest clue what that was suppose to mean.

_What did he tell me that for?_

It took him a while to understand that Rukawa meant for him to come back as well, though that only got him more confused, and a little uneasy.

_I wish he would act like a normal person…_

Hanamichi looked down the beach in the direction from which Rukawa usually came. There were a few other people strolling close along the ocean, in pairs or in groups, but he was not among them.

Looking down, Hanamichi absently traced a finger through the dry sand, scrawling out the words "Ten Sai" in wobbly characters.

He tilted his head and looked at his handiwork for a brief moment, before sweeping out the writing, sighing.

_Tensai indeed…_

_What possessed me?_

Often during his rehab hours he had rethought over the events of the past months and wonder what it was exactly that made his love of basketball escalate so.

_For popularity? For attention? For plain fun?_

_For acceptance? For an escape? For Haruko?_

No doubt each of these factors contributed to it, yet he couldn't place a finger on exactly what it was that he was doing it for…

_To prove himself? For recognition? For…_

"Rukawa!"

So absorbed was he in this contemplation that it came as quite a shock when he glanced up and saw the dark-haired boy standing no more than five feet away, staring at him.

"How long have you been here!" He exclaimed, feeling a little embarrassed.

Rukawa replied carelessly "Does it matter?"

"Hn," Hanamichi grunted as Rukawa sat down beside him "It'd be nice if you'd stop sneaking up on me all the time"

"I can't help it if you're zonking out all the time" Rukawa shot back.

Hanamichi glared at Rukawa, but the other boy didn't take the slightest notice as his eyes trained out to the open waters. They remained so for a while until Hanamichi felt compelled to speak up.

"Did you make me come back here for a reason, or did you just want to annoy me?"

"I didn't make you come back here" was the cool reply.

"What! You said…"

"I said 'I'll be here tonight'" Rukawa finally turned to look at him "I didn't say anything about you having to come back"

"Since when did we start just telling each other stuff out of the blue?" Hanamichi didn't buy it for a second "Quit stalling or I'm outta here!"

"You got somewhere better to be?"

"Better than just sitting here with some stubborn fox"

"Ch'" Rukawa frowned, but shrugged off the comment.

They sat there in silence for about a minute, Hanamichi stealing glances at Rukawa's face every now and again in a futile attempt to figure out what was on his mind, finally, Rukawa spoke up.

"So you're really gonna stay here?"

Feeling a little impatient, Hanamichi asked in return "Is that all you've got to say?"

"No"

"Well get on with the rest of it, you _know_ I have to stay here"

"What about…school and stuff?"

"Does it even matter?" Hanamichi mumbled "I'd start falling behind the day school begins anyway, what difference could a month make?"

"…"

They were silent again for a while longer, before Rukawa spoke again:

"Do they…let you do any training?"

Hanamichi frowned "I…have to do a certain amount of physical stuff, if that's what you mean, I'm in rehab remember?"

Rukawa rolled his eyes "No, I mean training as in playing basketball"

"Oh, that…" Hanamichi sighed "Nope, absolute zilch"

"Really?" Rukawa raised an eyebrow "Didn't think you'd have the self-control"

"Well you shouldn't go around judging people before you know them" Hanamichi retorted. Inwardly he cringed a little, it wasn't as if the temptation hadn't driven him completely out of his mind, but the rules at the rehab centre were so strictly enforced that breaking them was out of the question. He knew it was only for his own good, but he couldn't help but feel like some sort of prisoner.

"You're not that hard to see through" Rukawa said "About as simple and stubborn as a rock"

"Where the hell are you pulling this from!" Hanamichi exclaimed angrily.

"It's obvious" Rukawa returned "Especially after you insisted going back onto the court when everyone thought you were dying or something"

"That's beyond exaggerating!" Hanamichi yelled "It wasn't even noticeable to begin with!"

"Just goes to show how thick you really are then" Rukawa rolled his eyes "You were in pain the moment you got up"

"Was _not_!" Hanamichi denied fiercely "How would you know!"

Rukawa looked at him for a moment, but chose to drop the subject; he really didn't want to go into exactly '_how'_ he knew. That moment of that certain game was still so vivid to him…it almost hurt somehow.

"Besides, you must've been pretty stubborn to dive for the ball like that, no one with an ounce of sense would've trusted the timing"

"Don't compare me to you mere mortals" Hanamichi said "I knew what I was doing"

"But no one else ever does" Rukawa murmured "You just go crashing about everywhere and no one knows what to expect"

"Thought you just said I was easy to see through"

"Yeah, you are, you're like a big transparent bomb – I can see right through you but I still don't know when you're gonna blow something up"

Hanamichi pulled a face "Your analogy scares me"

"Makes it all the more appropriate"

A moment of silence passed before Hanamichi asked:

"Did you actually want to say anything to me?"

Rukawa opened his mouth as if to respond, but instead he just sighed, and looked away without saying anything.

"Well?" Hanamichi demanded "Come on, surely you didn't make me meet you here just to compare me to some type of weird explosive"

"Hn…" Rukawa grunted, and suddenly he was on his feet "I gotta get back"

"Wha…!" Hanamichi jumped up as well, the blanket slipping from his shoulders "That was all you wanted to say!"

"I…guess…" Rukawa replied vaguely "I just wanted to see you…"

"Huh?" Utterly befuddled, Hanamichi could only blink at him.

"You know, just in case anyone back home asks about you" Rukawa added "They all know I've been here all this time, I can't very well say I've never seen you"

"Oh, okay" Hanamichi accepted the explanation, it was the most logical thing Rukawa has said all day – or all summer it seemed – anyway "Well you can tell them I'm fine, and say hi to Haruko for me"

Rukawa frowned "Who?"

"What do you mean 'who'!" Hanamichi exclaimed "Haruko-_san_!" he emphasized, as if that made it all clear.

"Captain Akagi's younger sister right?" Rukawa randomly took a guess.

"Yes! Now you be nice to her!"

"Fine"

"But not too nice" Hanamichi hastily added "Don't you dare take her away from _me_!"

Rukawa felt a slight headache forming…_there's no pleasing this idiot, and what the heck would I want with Akagi's sister anyway?_

"Fine" He sighed, before picking up the blanket and throwing it over Hanamichi's head "Now put this back on, or go inside, I'm not keep you company anymore"

"You keep me company!" Protested Hanamichi "It was you who…"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever" Rukawa waved off the rest of the sentence "I'll see you… when you get back"

"What, are you gonna miss me or something?" Hanamichi asked sarcastically, and laughed.

But Rukawa didn't answer; he merely brushed the sand from his clothes and hands, and quietly said "Take care", before he once again headed back the way he had come.

_Take care…_


	4. 4

Early the following morning, Rukawa boarded the bus that would take him to the station, from where he would take the train home. Most of his teammates went back to sleep the minute they got on the bus, and the trip commenced in silence but for the light drizzle of raindrops on the windows. As the bus passed along the road that ran alongside the beach Rukawa gazed out at the familiar spot along the sand. But for the first time that summer, Hanamichi was absent, there was no one there. Perhaps it was due to the rain, but somehow Rukawa doubted that that was true.

School started and routine returned, in a way Rukawa felt like nothing has changed. He still slept through his morning classes; he was still the object of every female's attention, he was still the star of the basketball team, and he still didn't give a damn.

True enough, there were some alterations to the structure of the basketball team, Miyagi and Mitsui had risen to take the positions of captain and vice-captain, a few more people had signed up for the team, and they now had two managers. But the routine was still the same, the intensive practice games, the endless, rigorous drills, Anzai-Sensei's laugh, Ayako's paper fan…

Nothing has changed, and yet everything was different.

There may have been more people around him, but the whole place just seemed too quiet, no one was screaming at him, no one was challenging him at every given opportunity. It made him feel uneasy, and the fact that it made him uneasy made him feel confused.

Practice sessions had already commenced by the time he rejoined the team, and he was surprised by the new-found enthusiasm his teammates were showing. Ayako must've sensed this somehow, for one day she said to him:

"They must've seen the performance of the team during the inter-high matches, that kind of passion for a sport can obviously be highly contagious"

He didn't make any remark, and merely shrugged.

"Of course…" She added "You and Sakuragi Hanamichi have been the talk of the team all summer"

He started at the mention of Hanamichi's name, and cautiously glanced at the senior, who smiled back broadly "You two make quite a pair"

He tried to put on a look of disgust, but instead felt himself blushing. Quickly looking away, he made a major effort to _un-_blush, before muttering an inaudible "whatever", and hurrying back to rejoin practice.

It took Rukawa until the end of his first week back before he was finally able to relate Haruko's name to her face. It wasn't that she was hard to remember, just that he never bothered to distinguish one fawning fan girl from the next, it was only when he realized that their new second manager was, in fact, the very same girl Hanamichi was infatuated with, that he started to take notice.

It was one afternoon, just as afternoon drills were wrapping up and people were filing out of the gymnasium, that Rukawa suddenly remembered the message Hanamichi had asked him to pass on. Though it felt weird that he was doing the do'aho a favor, he reasoned that it'd be easier than facing his wrath when he returned and finds out the message was never delivered.

So he called out to her, just as she was stepping out the door:

"Haruko!"

Immediately, the entire gym fell silent. It happened so fast that he could still hear the "ko" echoing off the walls. All the girls who had gathered in the stands to watch their practice stopped short in the middle of their chatter, and spun their attention toward him with widened eyes and gaping mouths. Even Ayako turned to look.

Haruko had frozen in the doorway, and took a moment before she slowly turned to face him. She had such a startled look on her face that Rukawa wondered what he could've possibly done to make her look as horrified as she so.

He didn't know why everyone thought his actions were worth gawking at, but whatever the cause he still didn't feel like yelling out his message for everyone to hear, so he made his way over to her, noticing with some bewilderment that she looked more frightened the closer he got. By the time he reached her, her face was a shocking color of red.

Just as he passed her, he leaned down, and spoke softly so that no one would hear:

"The do'aho wanted me to tell you hello"

"Oh…oh…" Haruko stuttered, her breath coming in short.

He hadn't really meant to stop, for he wasn't looking for a response, but the girl looked so very tense that he couldn't help but pause momentarily and ask:

"Are you all right?"

"Mm…mmhmm!" She nodded frantically, but blushed even harder and still couldn't formulate any words. Her expression was so bizarre, it reminded him of the way Hanamichi would react whenever a girl would praise him on anything, and he couldn't help but smirk.

Later on as he was packing up his things in the change room, he thought he heard squealing coming from the gym, he considered going there to see what the fuss was about, but then decided it wasn't worth the effort.

_Probably nothing to do with me anyway…_

In order to prevent Hanamichi falling too far behind on his studies, the doctor had allowed him two days time to visit his high school and pick up on the materials they were studying. Had this doctor known Hanamichi's attendance record in the past, he may never have bothered with such a trip, but Hanamichi jumped at the chance to go back to Kanagawa and so didn't explain any of this to the unknowing man.

He had wanted to surprise his friends when he got back, and so he didn't contact Youhei or any of his gang to let them know of his arrival.

Thinking himself something of a celebrity back at school, he donned the typical low hat and sunglasses in order to sneak into the grounds unnoticed, and though he got the occasional curious glance from passing students, no one paid much attention to him.

Feeling smugly proud of himself, he was just about to round the corner to the gym when he heard a few female voices chattering. He would've ignored them, but for the one sentence he caught:

"Can you believe Rukawa's actually going out with Haruko!"

Hanamichi froze…_Rukawa? Haruko!_

"I mean, she's been drooling after him for heaven-knows-how-long…" the same voice continued "And he's never paid any attention to her, but then suddenly, summer's over and they've become an item, what the heck happened!"

Hanamichi felt his heart pounding as he tried to absorb the information…_Rukawa and Haruko are together…? They've been together since school started! How come I knew nothing about this!_

"You know what I bet?" Another voice piped up "I'll bet that he's just doing it as a favor or something for her brother"

"You reckon?"

"Yeah, think about it! Her brother was the basketball team captain, he's gotta have some sort of influence over Rukawa"

"Hmm…I suppose that kinda makes sense…"

_Influence…captain…_

_Gori was in on this as well!_

"You know what's weird?" Hanamichi had lost track of who was speaking, the way his head was swirling "They never really walk around together or anything like that, not around school anyway…and even at basketball practice they don't say much to each other"

"They probably don't want everyone to know or something, although I mean, come on! It's so obvious!"

"I heard someone say that they secretly meet and stuff, you know, before school, after practice, on the rooftop or whatever…"

_The rooftop!_

At the mention of that place, Hanamichi's breath caught in his throat. For a reason he couldn't quite define, the rooftop was always something of a special place to him. It was somewhere he could go when he just wanted to get away from it all, for rarely did anyone else go there. And he's always imagined that that would be the place where, for the first time in his life, a special someone would accept his declaration of affection. He realized that it may be no more than a silly day dream, and he's never assumed Haruko will definitely be that someone, but it was still something he held on to, nonetheless.

The chatter still went on, but Hanamichi was no longer listening. All thoughts of surprising his friends and teammates flew out of his mind, there was only one place he needed go – one person he had to see…

_Rukawa!_

_-_

**A/N: **Thanks for the reviews people, feedback is always appreciated.

Just a side note, I've recently been diagnosed with clinical depression, and am in the midst of picking up the pieces of my shattered life. On top of that University has started and stress levels are escalating as fast as depression levels. You didn't need to know all that, but it's just another way of saying, since my whole existance is such a mess right now, don't count on any updates. Not for a long, _long_ while.


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